General Hospital star John Ingle passes away aged 84

John Ingle, who played patriarch Edward Quartermaine for two decades on soap opera General Hospital, has died at the age of 84.

The actor passed away on Sunday "surrounded by his family in California... after a courageous battle with cancer," according to a statement released by television network ABC.

He filmed his last episode of General Hospital on August 24.

"With great sadness, I share the news of John Ingle's passing. We love him and will miss him. John will always be a part of the #GH family," the show's executive producer Frank Valentini tweeted on Monday.

Ingle was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1928 and moved to California when he was a teenager.

He studied at Occidental College in Los Angeles and went on to teach drama at Beverly Hills High School and Hollywood High School for nearly 30 years.

His students included Richard Dreyfuss, Barbara Hershey, David Schwimmer and Nicolas Cage.

He retired from teaching in 1985 and began to pursue a career in acting. In addition to his role on General Hospital, Ingle’s credits include Cheers, The Drew Carey Show, Beverly Hills 90210 and Dallas.

Ingle married actress and singer Grace-Lynne Martin in 1951. They were married for 58 years until her death earlier this year from natural causes.